Four prominent Pakistani star cricketers — Shaheen Afridi, Mohammad Rizwan, Haris Rauf, and Shadab Khan — have officially registered for the upcoming Big Bash League (BBL) draft.
Globally, over 600 international players have registered for the draft, a list that also includes Pakistan Women’s team captain Fatima Sana, whose name is among those available for the Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) draft.
The draft events for BBL 15 and WBBL 11 are scheduled to take place on June 19.
The initial player list for BBL 15 features Pakistan’s Shaheen, Rizwan, Haris, and Shadab. They are joined by other international luminaries such as West Indies’ Shamar Joseph, New Zealand’s Lockie Ferguson and Tim Southee, England’s Sam Curran and Alex Hales, and Sri Lanka’s Kusal Perera.
For WBBL 11, the preliminary list includes England’s Heather Knight, Lauren Bell, Danni Wyatt, and Sophie Ecclestone; India’s Jemimah Rodrigues and Shikha Pandey; South Africa’s Shabnim Ismail and Chloe Tryon; and West Indies’ Deandra Dottin. All-rounder Fatima Sana is also a part of this draft pool.
The comprehensive list of all registered players and detailed information regarding their availability for the draft will be released shortly.
BBL General Manager Alistair Dobson expressed considerable enthusiasm regarding the participation of these global stars, stating that their inclusion will introduce an exciting new dimension to the BBL. He highlighted that the presence of names like Shaheen, Rizwan, Heather Knight, and Sophie Ecclestone underscores the appeal of both the BBL and WBBL to top-tier players worldwide.
“We are very excited by the nominations for the Big Bash Leagues drafts including some global superstars who will add enormous intrigue as the clubs compete for the best available talent.”
“Having household names such as Shaheen Afridi, Mohammad Rizwan, Heather Knight and Sophie Ecclestone nominate demonstrates the continuing appeal of the Big Bash Leagues to some of the world’s best players.”
